Just a Matter of Time
by fire-emblem-girl
Summary: He's not there to save Mello, God forbid he call it saving him. Mello's injury from Matt's POV. Slight M/M. Oneshot.


A oneshot I've been trying to finish for awhile due to my unhealthy love for Matt/Mello. I finally got down to it ha ha.

Just a Matter of Time.

He's used to this by now-the ringing of his cell phone and the now unfamiliar voice of his friend snapping for him to get his ass over to wherever said friend may be. Not to save him, heaven forbid that Mello ask for a rescue, but support. That's the closest thing Matt can liken it to because he usually ends up standing beside his blonde companion like some sort of guard dog though neither of them looks very menacing. Especially not Mello with his bobbed hair that reminds Matt of a seven year old girl. Regardless, he goes-he always goes even if he just stands there playing his PSP. Today is no different of course in respect to the anger. He doesn't figure Mello can sound nice in any form of the word even with his cute haircut and addiction to chocolate.

"Hurry up and get here."

"Where're you at?"

"The base. Everyone's dead, so you know. Useless idiots."

"Okay, be there in a few."

Mello always hangs up first. He's used to that too because once everything has been said the other teen doesn't like to hang around chattering about stupid things like the weather. Also he probably doesn't want to hear Matt talk about video games though the red head can't really understand why.

He's just barely old enough to drive and only has a car because of Mello's 'connections'. He reaches the base around the time the police do. There's already a group of bystanders huddled around the building being pushed back by SWAT members. The scene is hot. Probably because the structure is half gone and what's left of it is starting to collapse. He runs a hand through his hair and lights up a cigarette. There's no way anyone is left in the building-no way. But then...Mello did say he is in the base and this is it. Matt takes a drag of his smoke and holds it in while he thinks of how to get past the cops. He really can't afford to get caught in there and neither can Mello-the place is a known mafia hideout. But...he's used to this too- being told to do things only to find that following the order is pretty much impossible. Something drives him to keep following Mello though. Not just friendship or duty as an underling it's something different. Maybe it's that he knows Mello has faith that he'll come through even if Matt has never beat him in anything except for video games.

A cylinder of ash falls to the ground and he flicks the butt over his shoulder before casually strolling past the scene. It smells worse the closer he gets and the place is spewing black smoke. Mello blew it up. He knows that much because he was the one who helped make the bomb that did it. He thinks the NPA members have probably found them and wanted the notebook back. He can't blame them-kidnapping an innocent and cute Japanese girl had been an asshole move on Mello's part. But what Mello wanted he usually got in short order.

The police haven't moved to the back of the building yet having a difficult enough time subduing the crowd and flames already without the extra task of taping off the perimeter. Matt pulls his sweater over his nose and jogs inside. Some places are still burning while others have mostly faded into embers. The ceiling is threatening to cave in on the largely agape floor and he thanks whoever he can think of that he's wearing goggles otherwise his eyes would be stinging like they were being attacked by bees by now. Navigating is more difficult than he thought in the charred room and it takes him a few minutes to finally reach a staircase. He thinks briefly about how Mello was able to survive. They hadn't made the blast survivable by any stretch of the word and he knows that if he was going out Mello would want to do so while taking as many people with him as possible. Mello is stupid-he rests on that for the time being. Mello is so stupid he wouldn't know when to properly die.

It's the main sitting room that he finally gets why Mello told him everyone was dead. Matt has seen dead people before and now is not somehow special in that respect. He knew them very slightly. The big bald guy and the glasses wearing one. Both of them are lying on the floor staring upwards at nothing like macabre dolls. It makes him want to light up another cigarette but he doesn't. He's not sorry they're dead if it means Mello is alive only because Mello's his friend and they really aren't. Plus they were idiots who thought they lived in GTA.

He starts to hurry-smoke is invading his lungs now and it's not a nice feeling. Kind of like a cigarette except scorching hot. The first place he looks is the security room because it has a metal door and he guesses Mello would have run there first. As he rounds the corner his heart starts beating like he's going to have a heart attack. He can't figure out why until he remembers that he's looking for Mello in there and the door is gone and half the building is gone and realizes he's afraid of what he'll see.

"Mello!" his voice is muffled by his sweater but he gets a response.

"Matt. Get your ass over here."

He does as he's told. It smells worse over here. Like burning flesh and plastic and fire. He kneels on the floor and wonders how he could have heard the other boy calling for him when the blonde still wore a gas mask. It's better to leave it on for now he figures-so Mello doesn't breathe in a lot of smoke.

"Took you long enough."

"Had to find you. We should go. The cops are already here."

"Good for them."

Matt reaches out to help him up but gets an angry glare.

"That hurts you idiot!"

"Sorry. I thought you might need help."

"I don't. I can walk on my own."

He knows that's a lie. If he could walk he wouldn't have called Matt in the first place. He got the call because he is needed for whatever reason even if Mello doesn't admit it. So he lets the blonde try to stand on his own and fail. He hears the gasp of pain and forces himself to ignore it for now because they have to get out and if he doesn't stay stoic they'll be stuck here until the police come.

"I told you not to detonate it so close to yourself." He wants to say that but he shuts up. Now isn't the time for 'I told you so' even if there is a need to say it.

"I'm not going to the hospital."

"Okay."

But Matt knows he has to. Most of the teen's right shoulder is torn and bleeding and the gas mask is shrunken on one side as if it has bonded to flesh in the intense heat. He tries not to look as he half drags Mello with him down the stairs and outside. They're safe. For now.

"Hey, you kids! What're you doin' over there?! This is a crime scene!"

"Get me my gun."

"You lost it. And I don't have one on me," he lies. His 9mm is shoved in his pocket-safety on of course.

"Idiot."

"Sorry officer!" the red head yells over his shoulder and takes off running. Mello can't keep up with his pace of course but he has to run. The cop is gaining on them, shouting for his teammates to back him up. He starts sweating more than he had in the building as if doing so will stop him from continuing. He knows he won't make it, he knows Mello won't either and he knows they'll get caught by the police and questioned. Maybe even put in jail. He can't handle that-prison.

"Hurry up or he'll catch us!"

Mello is giving another nearly impossible order and he probably knows it. But Matt tries to speed up despite having to pick through debris and the burning in his throat. He falls. Tripped up by a wire protruding from the ground in the alley behind the burning base.

"You BASTARD! You BASTARD! FUCK YOU!" Mello screams at him in a shrill voice but he sounds close to tears too.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry. I didn't see it."

"Just hurry up and get us out of here."

His arms strain and shriek at him as he struggles to pull himself and Mello to their feet. They won't do it. And his legs give out too dropping them both to the dirt ridden pavement again. He should've asked for help. He should've known he couldn't do it on his own. The blonde isn't heavy but Matt is stretched beyond the limits of his own strength. Video games didn't lend well to working out.

"Get up."

"I can't. I'm...too tired."

"Are you calling me fat, asshole?"

He grinned, "No. You should be though."

"Then let's go."

"Mello I really-"

"I said go."

He had been quite content living out his days at Wammy's playing video games until Mello had come back and demanded that he work with him. Near had asked him too but that kid freaks him out. And anyway him and Mello had been better friends than he and Near had. He hadn't known he would be running around America trying to find Kira and buying copious amounts of chocolate or that Mello would turn out to be so damn needy.

"Okay."

Matt forces himself to his feet by some act of God or whatever other deity he can think of and manages to drag Mello up too. His legs are shaking but they make it to his car. Mello's shoulder bleeds all over the leather seats and he is very quiet except for his breathing. All he can think of is how nice it feels to sit and that he's glad he saved Mello. Relief pours into every one of his limbs-he's tired enough to pass out right now but stays awake.

"Take me to your place."

"Alright."

He doesn't want to take Mello to his place. He'll bleed all over, the gas mask will be stuck to his face forever, and Matt wants to know everything will be alright. Not only because his pay cheque depends on Mello living but they are friends. Above all they have a relationship as odd as it is. So he wants to smoke an entire pack of smokes to get rid of his thoughts pertaining to how he'll lose his job if Mello dies. Because he wants Mello to live even if it does get him beat up.

Matt hits the curb a couple times further confirming in his own mind that he really shouldn't drive outside of Need for Speed or Gran Turismo. Mello calls him a retard both times-blood loss limits his ability to come up with creative insults Matt thinks. Either way they make it through the L.A traffic without any incident other than drivers staring when they're stopped at lights.

Dragging Mello turns out to be more difficult than ever especially since the blonde's legs seem hell bent on making them both fall. He has quick flashes of him carrying his friend bridal style but quashes them. Mello is not a girl and he certainly wouldn't go for being treated like one.

"You're probably gonna go play your stupid games, aren't you?"

"Yeah, probably," he only says it for a response only he doesn't get one. It reminds him of the time he and Mello go totally hammered and ended up falling asleep in a questionable position. Being that they had practically been spooning. It had been cold that night of course. So they were just trying to keep warm because neither of them had thought to put on blankets it was stupid to think otherwise. The next morning Mello had thrown up schnapps on the rug next to his own bed while Matt tried curing his own hangover with greasy food and aspirin then ended up making an offering to the porcelain bowl gods too.

"Hey, Mello, remember that time when we went to the club with the guys and you got hit on by another guy? I do. That was funny shit. I know I could have saved you but I'm not much of a scary guy, right?"

"Shut up! My head hurts!"

Matt laughs then frowns, "yeah, I'll get you some Advil or something. Oh, man...you're bleeding everywhere..."

His eyes follow the trail they're leaving behind them on the white carpet then sticks the key in the lock. It clicks loudly but he has to jiggle it a bit before the door will open properly. The toes of Mello's boots scrape along the brief stretch of wood floor then go silent when they hit area rug. He's careful to watch out for the wires strewn about on the ground before he lowers the other teen onto the couch. His medicine cabinet is nearly empty other than peroxide and a couple bandages that look too small to be of any use. But he takes them anyway.

"I don't have any stuff for pain right now so you'll either have to suffer through it or go to the hospital."

"Get it over with."

"Ookay! This is like Trauma Centre except-"

"Shut your damn mouth, Matt!"

Matt sits on the arm of the couch and pulls his goggles off his eyes. The wound looks even worse without a green tinge to it. It's all a mass of singed shoulder and lacerations that are leaving the blood trail. His hand hovers over the flesh for a second before tipping the bottle. Some splashes onto the couch but he pays that no mind in light of the fact that Mello is trying to punch him in the groin. He pours more on and wrinkles his nose at the crackling by the peroxide.

"Take this mask off, stupid."

"Yeah...Alright."

He sees the gloved hand reach upwards and smack its owner in the chin but pays it no mind. The flesh he can see is pale, almost ghostly and makes his stomach turn. Mello's penchant for wearing black always washes out his skin but this looks different somehow. The blonde doesn't try to remove the mask again.

"It hurts...Matt, you fucking retard who the hell doesn't have Advil for Christ sakes?!" the first part comes out as a slight whine but turns into the familiar snap by the end of the sentence.

"Didn't know you'd be blowing yourself up any time soon."

"Don't be a smart ass!"

"Alright. But you're bleeding all over my furniture."

Mello glares through the darkened plastic, "shut up! I'll buy you a new fucking couch! There, are you happy?!"

"Yeah, I'm happy. It'd make me happier if you'd stop bleeding out in my living room..."

"I'm not bleeding out, idiot! It'll stop in a few minutes," the other guy grumbles and crosses his uninjured arm halfway across his chest.

"I guess you want me to sew you up too?"

"Shut up and let me sleep. Go play your stupid games."

He lights up a cigarette and takes a few puffs before Mello asks him to put it out. Not demands-asks. Something that he hasn't felt since he first arrived at Wammy's starts coursing through his body. He's scared. Mello doesn't _ask_ for anyone to do anything. He tells them what they're going to do and they do it. If he has to he will demand they follow his order. Never asks.

"Mello, come on, just let me take you to the ER man."

"That's a real great plan, idiot! Yeah, I'll just walk in there and tell them I blew...the cops will come. No wonder you're number three..."

"M-Mello, hey! Come on and get up alright?!"

Mello has a major complex about rankings-Near especially. And to top it all off he has a hard on the size of Texas for L. Matt swore he heard him crying after Roger told them all that L had been killed pursuing Kira. And after that the blonde had left Wammy's so he wouldn't have to work with Near.

"You're giving me a headache. Shut up."

"I don't have antibiotic gel that heals wounds..." he murmurs, "...L wouldn't want you to die so stupidly."

He plays the L card even though he hates talking about the other detective as a motivator. It's maybe because it makes him feel like Mello detests him with all his being and would therefore never do anything just because Matt asked him to.

"What the hell do you know about L?!"

The red head shrugs, "that he wouldn't agree with what you're doing..."

The other guy raises his hand but doesn't end up hitting Matt instead resting his gloved hand on his companion's shoulder so Matt has to lean over to keep the fair haired teen from hitting himself in his burnt chest. Mello clenches his fist pulling strands of auburn hair back until pinpricks of pain shock Matt into action. He shifts backward but that just provokes a response.

"What the fuck do you know about L?! You think you know?! Matt you never cared about anything..."

His hair is released and Mello doesn't say anything else. The blue eyes are covered by eyelids- he's probably asleep or at least unconscious. Matt frowns, it feels weird. Like when Aerith died in Final Fantasy 7. There's the same sensation in his eyes-prickling-and the same pressure on his chest. He manages to scoop Mello up and carry him to the bathroom. A slow trickle of blood dots the white porcelain of the bathtub with red. The left shoulder's skin is one massive patch of charred black skin with bubbles surrounding the most burnt area. He doesn't want to touch it anymore or else Mello might wake up and scream at him again. The flesh around it is peeling off like the time they both got sunburns only 10 times worse. He has vague thoughts of 'what if Mello won't be able to see from his one eye again?' before killing them with how he would get help and everything would be okay.

"I don't know how you did this. But I guess I'll have to save you again Princess Zelda."

He gets a few towels and soaks them with water from the sink then gingerly wipes at the affected area telling himself it's just like Trauma Centre except it's for real, that he can handle it. Mello doesn't wake up. He wishes he would just to yell at him and let him know he's still alive. Because Mello is breathing funny and shaking like he's cold and it makes Matt think that maybe they should've went to the hospital instead of his apartment. The gamer doesn't waste anymore time now so that Mello doesn't wake up and stop him. He picks up the blonde carefully-bridal style since he won't get in trouble now-then carries him downstairs to the garage. Air whooshes out of Mello's lungs when he hits the seat but Matt ignores it for now so he can drive to the hospital.

The other cars on the road honk their horns at him only Matt doesn't care and keeps on driving like a maniac. When he pulls into the emergency entrance he's lucky that paramedics just coming off of a call are leaving so they help him. Only his throat closes up. He starts to sweat and the entire world feels like it's an inch from his face strangling him, too close, not letting him move or breath. They don't let him stay with Mello even though he tries to tell them that he needs to. He needs to be there or else Mello will be pissed off when he wakes up. Someone makes him sit down in one of the too bright too clean rooms on top of one of the medical beds. Matt pulls his goggles back over his eyes.

"M…M…Mello."

"Is that who you came in with? What's your name son?"

"A-A-Ah…M-Mail…J-Jeevas."

"So Mail, tell me what happened with you and your friend."

The doctor has bags under his eyes and greying hair with a few wrinkles around his mouth and eyes. Matt thinks he doesn't look threatening but he could be wrong. He doesn't want to think he's not an enemy then have him be. It's a battle between 'run away' and 'save Mello'.

"An…An…A-Accident."

"What kind of accident? Did he come into contact with flames or an explosion of some kind? Chemicals? It's very important that you tell me everything you know Mail-your friend's life could depend on it."

"Explosion. I…Don't….I don't know anything. He just called me," his voice starts to level out now that he's being forced to breathe more regularly and the hospital room isn't so strange anymore.

"So he called you to come and help him. Where was he? There was a fire just across town I heard on the news, was he part of that?"

He shakes his head quickly, "n-no. Not Mello. Mello wasn't there."

"So he got in an accident. You know, either he or you will have to tell us the truth eventually, the cops are all over the place looking for people connected to the emergency."

The cops. The cops. Mello will kill him. Mello will hurt him if he tells but if he doesn't Mello might die. The red head is clenching his fists needing a cigarette and his PSP to keep him occupied but he can't find his smokes and his PSP is back at his apartment.

"Le-Let me see M…Mello."

"He's in surgery right now no doubt. Is there a number I can call to fill out the forms for health insurance or do you have the information?"

He nods. Mello made him memorize it for the two of them. The number for Wammy's, the claim number, the insurance company forms, all of it is in his head. "I know it."

The papers are placed in front of him on a clipboard and he closes his eyes for a moment, calling all of the information back to the front of his brain and hovering just behind his eyelids. In his hands the pen dances back and forth between his fingers but he's able to put words in all of the blanks. Mello. What if Mello is dead? He's a guy so he can't cry or anything like that so he just sits with his back against the wall and his knees close to his chin. It feels nice and safe and if he closes his eyes he can imagine he's back at Wammy's playing his Gameboy while Mello reads a book. No one bothers him either-maybe nobody even notices he's there. It had been the same back at Wammy's. If he sat in a corner not saying anything people walked right by him until Mello showed up. It wasn't that he hated other people, the ones in video games were just easier to get along with-especially Mello. Who had burst into the orphanage wearing a scowl, pushed past Roger and pointed right at him. "You. You're coming with me to L.A. Matt." It hadn't occurred to him that Mello even remembered his name seeing as the blonde hadn't returned to their old home after leaving it to go after Kira until he needed Matt's help. The wait hadn't been long-only about a year or so-but Mello always seemed to know _everybody_ so why would he remember Matt?

"Your insurance has gone through; would you like to come to the waiting room?"

His eyes open so he can see the nurse standing in front of him. She's got dark hair and darker circles around her eyes. Her scrubs have got Snoopy on them.

"Is…Mello…"

"Are you family? Otherwise…"

"O-Orphans. We don't…h-h-have any family…"

She nods once quickly then motions for him to follow her. The waiting room is deathly quiet other than the sound of people coughing and the steady beeping of machines. There's only one chair left open beside a girl who looks like she'll puke any second-Matt chooses to stand in the corner instead. He wonders how he'll pass the time without his games and being half dead from carrying Mello around makes the seat next to puking girl look kind of appealing. The goggled teen sits on the tile floor wishing for a glass of water or something because his mouth is dry and drinking would give him something else to do other than waiting.

The minutes turn into hours and Matt ends up getting up a couple times. Once to get a bottled water and once to go to the bathroom where he notices how dirty he is. Most of his face is black from smoke, his hair sticks up and his clothes too are stained with soot and some blood. He washes his face then uses some water to flatten his hair just a bit since Mello says he looks like a mushroom when even a little of his hair is messy. Even though it's Mello who has the mushroom cut. The counter top is cold under his hands because he took off his gloves which makes him afraid that Mello's have stuck to his hands. He tries not to hyperventilate.

"Mail Jeevas?"

He stands up hoping for the best but in the back of his mind the worst case scenario is playing through his head.

"Your friend is in the ICU. Please follow the instructions before entering the burn unit."

He wants to run though he manages to restrain himself and just walks at a brisk pace upstairs. It's louder up there but the moment he reaches the burn unit everything is white and even the air smells like medicine. Before he can take another step 2 nurses stop him.

"You can't enter here looking like that. People with burns are very susceptible to infection and _you_ look like a walking bag of germs."

"…B…But…M…Mello…"

"Go home, take a shower and change your clothes then come back."

Matt wants to tell them to shut up and let him see Mello. Only he doesn't because if he does they probably won't let him come back and he has to be there when Mello wakes up. So he runs downstairs and jumps in his car. His driving improves since he has to slow down due to rush hour but not by much. The gamer ignores the trail of blood running through his apartment just so he can quickly get back to the hospital. He's halfway down the stairs to the garage again when his cellphone rings-it's Roger.

"Ro…Roger. What is it?"

"What's going on now? What has Mello gotten himself into?"

"Nothing. Nothing. He didn't do anything. Just an …issue. An issue came up and I've gotta go."

"…I don't approve of what he's doing."

"I've gotta go."

He doesn't really care what Roger thinks because Roger isn't as nice as the real Wammy. The real one died with L though and since then Roger took over the orphanage. They only keep in contact with the old man because they occasionally need his assistance with something-like now with money. Not that Mello is poor but he said "why should I spend my cash when I can spend Roger's?". Matt thought it was kind of a mean thing to say at the time but now he's glad that Mello is a little bit mean when he needs to be. He hangs up the phone. It was costing him ridiculous amounts of money to talk to the man in England anyway.

Mello is lying on a bed-a sea of white except for the blonde hair and burnt skin. His eyes are closed and half of his face is covered in white gauze along with his left shoulder and torso. An IV is stuck in the uninjured arm and a machine lets out a dull pulse with every beat of Mello's heart. Matt hovers in his gown and mask near the door. Afraid to go in all the way, afraid to approach in case Mello wakes up and starts screaming at him. Except when he finally gets up the courage to walk over the other guy doesn't open his eye. He doesn't move either. He looks dead. Matt's seen dead people-hanging around with Mello and his gangster "friends" made it an everyday occurrence only those people weren't Mello. He didn't know those people, those people never talked to him, never chose him out of everyone to help them. His mouth opens but closes again. He shouldn't wake him up he thinks-someone told him, maybe it'd been his parents, that when you're sick you need rest. Mello's really sick so he just sits down on the floor next to the bed and plays his PSP on mute.

"Matt."

The voice comes out hoarse like Mello has a bad cold. He stands up immediately and holds his breath.

"Where…"

"…The…Hospital…"

"Idiot. You know…how many people…gonna have to pay off…" the injured teen didn't open his eye as he spoke though.

"I'm sorry. You were bleeding all over you know. And your skin was all black."

Mello's hand floats slowly up and rests on Matt's face, "stupid…ass…"

"You're the stupid one! I'm not the one who blew myself up!"

"Shut...Shut up..."

The drugs must be making him passive and unMello-like but he prefers this for now because yelling would probably hurt the blonde more. Besides, it's not often Mello is nice to him. So he takes this for the time being and tries not to think too hard about how Mello will kill him once he gets better. Because Mello _will _kill him, it's just a matter of when.

* * *

Poor Mello. I did my research on burns! I also just got one at work last week which was not part of it but now I have an idea of what it feels like(it HURTS). So he has 3rd degree burns on over 10% of his body so hospital definitely should've been their first stop :'D

Apparently water that's too cold isn't good for you if you've got a burn or sunburn-because of the heat from the burn putting really cold water on it will make things worse.

Matt never seems to really talk to anyone but Mello ha ha.(not that he has an opportunity to XD) I think he's kind of a hikkikomori(social recluse) so that's why he was all "O_O" in the hospital. I just found out Matt and I share the same blood type ._. I'm a freak too. LOL. A lot of the really crazy ones seem to be A type in DN though.


End file.
